Many merchants allow customers to pay with credit cards, debit cards, and other types of bank cards or electronic accounts (e.g., gift cards, etc.). When customers use these types of payment types to fulfill a payment request, the merchant typically performs a verification process. The verification process often occurs electronically after an identifier is read from a card (e.g., via a swipe card reader, radio frequency identifier (RFID) reader, microchip reader, etc.). The verification process often contacts an issuer of the card or representative of the issuer to determine whether to approve a requested amount of the purchase request.
Some payment types use personal identification numbers (PINs) or other secret codes to protect against unauthorized use of the payment types. For example, at a point of sale (POS), a user may swipe her debit card using a swipe card reader and then enter an associated PIN on a keyboard of the card reader. The card reader and keyboard are typically exposed and visible to other people including a clerk, thus potentially compromising secrecy of the PIN. In some instances, such as at automated teller machines, the keypad is at least partially covered by a hood to prevent or limit visibility of the keypad by other users.
Often, people have multiple payment types, such as a collection of credit cards, debit cards, gift cards, and other cards or payment types. It can be inconvenient to carry multiple cards in a wallet. In addition, carrying multiple cards at once exposes a person to a large risk and/or inconvenience if the collection of cards is lost, misplaced, or stolen.